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~Bluedove's scorn~
Bluedove's Scorn "I will die for the Warrior Code so long as I know that I will have my place in StarClan..." ~ALLEGIENCES~ Leader Crowstar- Huge muscular grey/blue tom with striking orange eyes Deputy Hollyleap- Muscular black she-cat with green eyes Medicine Cat Icefeather- White large tom with a twisted, scarred leg and dark blue eyes Warriors Oakfoot- Brown tabby tom with green eyes APPRENTICE: Larkpaw Dustcloud- light brown tom with brown eyes Foxshine- Small dark orange she-cat with unusually long claws and blue eyes Rockpool- Huge grey tom with light blue eyes Snowfur- White she-cat with thick, fluffy fur and green eyes APPRENTICE: Volepaw Dogscar- Muscular brown tabby tom with yellow eyes; covered in scars, missing left eye and ear Leopardstep- Tall brown-eyed she-cat with unusual speckled fur Goosestep- Light grey tom with green eyes Rabbitwhisker- Tiny tortoiseshell she-cat with unusual light green eyes Deersong- Light brown she-cat with white speckles and blue eyes Lightningpatch- White tom with yellow eyes APPRENTICE: Berrypaw Birchpaw- Black tabby tom with green eyes Apprentices Larkpaw- Small dark brown tom with black feet and green eyes Volepaw- Cream-colored she-cat with brown eyes Berrypaw- Grey tabby tom with blue eyes Queens Goldensky- Beautiful tortoiseshell she-cat with blue eyes KITS: Bluekit, Adderkit Blossomfield- Large brown she-cat with dark green eyes KITS: Cloudkit, Leafkit, Marshkit Elders Cloverstripe- Sleek black tom with green eyes Primroseshade- Once beautiful tortoiseshell she-cat with blue eyes Squirrelclaw- Orange tabby tom with green eyes Prologue Bluedove stood above the highrock, staring down at the dead cats that lay still below her. "Those mousebrains..." She laughed, looking up at the stars that shimmered above. "I'm protecting you, StarClan. Don't forget." She stared around at the shocked cats that surrounded her. "Don't just stare at me!" The beautiful blue cat hissed. "Clean it up! Bury them! Throw them in the river; I don't care!" The skinny ThunderClan cats immediately stood up and began disposing of the three bodies. The other cats went to their dens, not daring to speak a single word under Bluedove's reign. She jumped down into the warm leader's nest, sliding her pads across the sand as she went to nap. Not long after, she comfortably fell into a deep sleep, ignoring the hungry cats around her. She greeted her two StarClan friends with a sinister smile on her face. "No one will dare harm the warrior code now that I'm watching them!" She meowed, sharing tongues with the tortoiseshell she-cat. To her shock however, the beautiful queen stood back, hissing at Bluedove. "You fool!" She laughed, standing next to the far larger tom. "You've done nothing except dig yourself a tunnel into the place of no stars. ''You're nothing but a monster." Bluedove stood in horror as the two cats leaped onto her, scratching and kicking, knowing that she would soon die. "''YOU DID THIS TO ME!" ''She shreaked, desperately trying to regain her balance. The black tabby tom stood back, letting out a furious cackle. "You did this to yourself. It was your choice. You're nothing but a sad mousebrain, and that's what you'll die being!" Chapter 1 ''Four moons earlier... Goldensky let out a loud shreak of pain that rattled the herbs stored away around her in the medicine cat den as she attempted to push out her fast-coming kits. "You're doing great, Goldensky! Just keep pushing and bite on this stick..." Icefeather, the rather handsome white medicine cat cheered while preparing to handle the kits. Crowstar touched noses with his golden mate, whispering sweet words of encouragement into her ears. Goldensky, despite her immense pain, looked up at Maplestar and let out a smile. One more push, and I'll bring beautiful kits to ThunderClan... She thought to herself with a sudden rush of energy. With one hard push, Icefeather yowled with joy as he announced, "It's a she-cat! Oh, she's so beautiful!" Goldensky burst with joy and gave one hard push as another kit entered the world. "This one is a tom! He's so handsome!" Icefeather purred, picking up the two squirming bundles of fur and handing them to Goldensky. "Be sure to lick them so that they can breath better." He added, running to fetch poppy seeds. Goldensky shifted over to Crowstar as she carried the two kits and whispered inbetween licks, "Our kits... We will raise them to be the best warriors in clan. These kits came straight from StarClan, and we will treat them as such..." Crowstar purred and licked inbetween her ears. This had not been the first time that the two well-known lovers had attempted to have kits. The previous time, the kits had died at birth, and Crowstar knew that Goldensky was determined to make sure that their two beautiful kits would not suffer such a horrible fate. "And whoever dares to harm them will pay!" Goldensky finished as she flexed her weak paws into the soft moss-covered dirt. ... "''Alright Adderkit, this time you'll be Scourge and I'll be Firestar!" Bluekit cheered as the two siblings played at the foot of the nursery. "We always play battles, Bluekit! I want to be a medicine cat." Adderkit retorted. Bluekit lowered herself into a sloppy hunter's crouch and pounced onto the cream-colored tom, replying, "I need to practice fighting; I'll die for Thunderclan!". Adderkit sighed and walked back into their warm, cozy nursery, where Goldensky watched, smiling at her young kits playing as they did every morning. "Hey, wait up!" Bluekit yowled as she trotted after her brother inside of the nursery. The smell of milk and queens filled Bluekit's senses as she crawled through the entrance. The familiar sound of purrs and quiet conversation among both the kits and queens enlightened Bluekit, and she quickly spotted her playmate sitting beside their mother, Goldensky. She trotted over and practically smushed her face into Goldensky's warm, silky fur. "Soon you're going to be an apprentice..." The mighty queen purred as she rolled over on her side, lightly closing her eyes. "Are you scared? I know I was scared when I first realized that I would be leaving the nursery." She finished, opening her eyes once again to focus on Bluekit. "Nope! I'm going to be the best warrior that ever lived." Bluekit replied, batting at a small piece of moss with Adderkit. "Well, a good warrior follows the warrior code, you know." Goldensky meowed. "The warrior code? What's that?" "Go to the elder's den, they'll be happy to tell you!" Bluekit shook the small strands of moss that clung onto her fur and pushed up Adderkit with her snout. "Come on!" She meowed, preparing to leap out of the nursery in a single jump. Adderkit refused and laid back down near Goldensky. "You go without me," He paused, making a loud, over-dramatic yawn, "I'm going to take a nap." Bluekit rolled her eyes and raced out of the nursery like a rabbit. She approached the small, rocky gorge where the elders spent their days and quietly peered in. "Hello there, youngster!" Squirrelclaw almost immediately meowed, quickly noticing Bluekit's intrusion. She carefully crept into the elder's den, making sure that she wouldn't wake any sleeping elder. "Hi Squirrelclaw!" She meowed, looking up at the wise elder. "What can I do for you today, hm?" "Well..." Bluekit meowed, shifting her paws onto the ground. "Can you tell me about the warrior code?" Squirrelclaw let out a small laugh and replied, "Go ask Primroseshade about that. She never stops squaking about that old code!" Primroseshade, the once beautiful she-cat, lifted her head and sneered, "Oh, just like how you never shut up about how many ticks are in your fur the moment that I try to go to sleep! The day I fall asleep without you complaining is the day that hedgehogs fly." Squirrelclaw cleared his throat and turned away from the grouchy, old queen. "Now then, young one, the warrior code is the code that every single cat in the forest must obey. It maintains peace and happiness throughout all clans, even in war. Without it, the forest would be nothing but chaos!" Primroseshade began, teaching Bluekit all about the ancient code that every cat was sworn to follow. Bluekit's eyes opened wide with curiosity and disbelief as Primroseshade explained the complex code and long-gone warriors. However, all too soon, the wise elder yawned and meowed, "That's enough for now. I'm taking a nap, See you soon!". Bluekit wailed and reluctantly exited the warm, cozy rock cave. ''The warrior code... She silently whispered once again, picturing all of the cats in her clan living in harmony thanks to the great code. "There you are!" A familiar voice yowled. Bluekit whipped around to see Adderkit stampeding straight towards her, and she quickly moved to the side, knocking him straight into the soft dirt. "Hey, what was that for?" He cried, shaking all of the dirt off of his matted, loose fur. Bluekit simply laughed and pushed her brother up with her tiny grey nose and slowly walked back to the nursery. "What were you doing in the elder's den?" Adderkit randomly asked. "I learned about the warrior code! Now I really will be the best warrior in ThunderClan..." "What's the warrior code?" "Well if you got off of your lazy behind and followed me then you would know! Just go to the elders tomorrow and ask for yourself." Adderkit playfully cuffed his grouchy sister as they entered the foot of the nursery. Goldensky greeted the two kits and cleaned their fur with her smooth, pink tongue. "Stop it, mom! You're embarrassing me..." Adderkit cried, but to no avail, Goldensky continued licking the helpless kit. Bluekit managed to slip past their over-protective mother and stared outside the entrance of the nursery and into the beautiful, blue sky that was slowly creeping into moonhigh. "Adderkit, come wait for silverpelt with me!" The small blue she-cat cheered, peering over at her brother, whom was now occupying himself with building a tiny moss nest. Adderkit dropped the small masses of moss inbetween his mouth and trotted over to his sister, his tail held high with excitement. Slowly but surely, moonhigh came, and the glittering, breath-taking ocean of stars flooded over ThunderClan. With the help of the moon, silverpelt managed to light up the entire camp, sending white, sparkling beams over the clearing. "Wow," Adderkit exclaimed, his tiny blue eyes wide with astonishment, "I've never seen silverpelt before!" Bluekit nudgee closer to her brother, almost intimidated by the sheer beauty of the stars. Suddenly, a huge black cloud pushed itself in front of silverpelt, blocking every single drop of light that the stars carried. The recently beautiful, enlightened camp was now nothing but dark black shadows once again. Goldensky approached the two saddened kits and whispered, "Alright loves, it's time to sleep now." Adderkit cried and wailed, but didn't dare to refuse his mother's orders. The two kits padded over to their warm, soft moss nest, and were quickly entangled in sleep. Bluekit awoke with a sudden feeling of heavy fear, and found herself in a huge, dark forest, covered by towering, dark brown trees; the canopy that the trees supported was so thick that it blocked out the sky. Bluekit felt like nothing more than a sickly, cowardly mouse as she stared at the trees looming over her. "We've been expecting you..." A low, feminine voice whispered. Bluekit spun around, but to no avail, she couldn't find a single cat throughout the cold, dark forest. "Who are you... Where are you?!" Bluekit wailed, looking around every blade of grass. "I know who you are..." The voice whispered once again. This time, whoever was speaking was so close to Bluekit that she could feel the hot breath against her fur. Bluekit turned around once more, and to her surprise, a huge, beautiful tortoiseshell she-cat with mesmerizing yellow eyes stared down at the young kit. "Are.. Are you a StarClan cat?" Bluekit asked, staring up at the unfamiliar she-cat. The she-cat let out a loud, almost mocking laugh, and answered, "Why yes, I am a StarClan cat. A strong, brave StarClan cat!" Bluekit couldn't tell if the cat was being sarcastic or not, but decided it would be best not to ask. "Then is this StarClan?" The she-cat once again began laughing in a fit and meowed, "Yes. This, my friend is StarClan!" Bluekit listened to the she-cat, her ears perked with interest. "I sense greatness in you, young Bluekit..." The she-cat began with a much more serious expression in her amber eyes. "Greatness that you simply cannot be taught by your simple, mousebrained clanmates. I, on the other hand, will teach you everything that you will need to know, with my powers of StarClan." The cat smiled and began to calmly lick her paw. "But I cannot teach you right now. The sun is rising!" The tortoiseshell she-cat then began to fade away in a dark cloud of smoke, until even her shadow disappeared. "Wait, don't leave me! I'm going to be stuck here!" Bluekit cried, spinning around in frantic circles. Suddenly, Bluekit awoke in her familiar, warm moss nest in the nursery once again. The sound of snoring, purring kits and queens filled the nest, and all other cats were sleeping except for Cloudkit, one of Blossomfield's eldest kits. "Keep quiet, would you? You're waking up the entire forest with your talking!" He sneered, curling up into his mother's fur once again. Bluekit payed no attention to him, however, and simply thanked StarClan that she was in her nest next to Goldensky and Adderkit once again. Chapter 2 "Wake up, Bluekit! Wake up, wake up, wake up!" Adderkit cheered, shoving his paws into her stomach as she slept in her warm nest. Bluekit lazily stood up, staring at her annoying brother. It had been two moons since Bluekit had her first encounter with the strange StarClan she-cat, and since that strange night, she hadn't seen the tortoiseshell queen since. "What is it, Adderkit? I'm trying to sleep, you mousebrain!" Bluekit hissed, curling herself back in her nest. Adderkit pushed her up once again and joyfully yowled, "We're becoming apprentices today!". Bluekit suddenly bounced up in disbelief. "Thank StarClan!" She meowed, racing out of the nursery. Adderkit quickly caught up, and the siblings ran to the apprentice's den. "You're not apprentices yet." A light brown she-cat sneered, standing in the way of the two kits. "Don't think that just because you're Crowstar's kits that the other apprentices and I are going to treat you like omens from StarClan!" She hissed, kicking up dust in front of the kit's faces as she bounced into the apprentice's den. Adderkit stared down at his paws, his fur hot with embarrassment. "Don't worry, Adderkit!" Bluekit cheered, lifting his chin up with her tiny blue paws. "Just because she has a few extra fleas in her fur doesn't mean that we have to suffer." Out of nowhere, Goldensky ran towards the two kits and jumped on them with licks and purrs. "I'm so proud of you two!" Goldensky purred, cleaning the two soon-to-be-apprentice's soft furs. "You two will become the best cats in ThunderClan, I can just feel it!" She finished, tears welling up in her eyes. Adderkit looked away, embarrassed once again. "Get ready, your father is going to announce a clan meeting any minute now." The beautiful queen meowed, padding back to the nursery across the camp. The two kits exchanged excited faces before padding to the highledge, where their father was silently preparing. At last, Crowstar greeted the two kits and jumped onto the ledge of the highledge where he called, "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here for a clan meeting!". One by one, cats from all over ThunderClan began to pour out of their dens like a flood. The different colors of each cat's back blended in together and made one big mass of fur, and each cat looked up at their respected leader in curiosity. Crowstar cleared his throat, and with pride-scent seeping out of his fur like sap, he began, "We gather here today for the apprentice ceremony of two beautiful kits, my own kits at that, Bluekit and Adderkit." The entire clan cheered and purred as the two kits approached their father on the highledge. Bluekit could sense her own nervousness, and she knew that others could see it, as well. "Bluekit','" Crowstar meowed, looking down on his young daughter,' '"you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Bluepaw. Your mentor will be Foxshine. I hope Foxshine will pass down all she knows on to you." The clan then began chanting Bluepaw's new name, and she looked down at every cat. Her nervousness had turned into pride and humbleness as she heard the sounds of other ThunderClan cat's approval. Foxshine, Bluepaw's new mentor, jumped onto the highledge and greeted her new apprentice. "Foxshine," Crowstar continued, "you are ready to take on an apprentice. You had received excellent training from Hollyleap, and you have shown yourself to be loyal and spiritual. You will be the mentor of Bluepaw, and I expect you to pass down all you know onto Bluepaw." Bluepaw touched noses with her beloved father and jumped down from the highledge, listening on to hear Adderkit's ceremony. He had been chosen as Icefeather's very first medicine cat apprentice, as widely anticipated, and Bluepaw joined in on chanting her brother's newly found name. After the ceremony, Bluepaw quickly greeted her new mentor and headed straight to the apprentice den, the powerful grip of tiredness compelling her every move. The beautiful moon had risen up above the camp, surrounded by a thick black fog, covering every star in sight. Bluepaw silently curled up in a makeshift moss bed and closed her eyes, quickly falling asleep. Bluepaw woke up, finding herself in the tall, dark forest that she had been in only one other time. The area was far more familiar to the young blue apprentice, and she no longer felt the intimidation that she wreaked of the first time that she explored the forest. She quickly found the tortoiseshell she-cat that she once met, and padded up to greet her. "So you come again." The she-cat whispered, narrowing her eyes at Bluepaw. "I see you've become an apprentice. The time of an apprentice is the best time to prove what you're worth in your clan. That's why training will begin tonight." The tortoiseshell cat then rose to her feet and let out a horrifying yowl that made the dead leaves on the ground shake, and to Bluepaw's surprise, another far larger cat appeared out of a thick group of bushes near the two she-cats. Bluepaw nearly fell back noticing the cat's appearance. The tom was a huge, muscular gray-and-white warrior with piercing amber eyes, much like the she-cat. He stood over Bluepaw like a badger, his icy gaze sending chills down the poor apprentice's spine. "I am Thistleclaw. This is Mapleshade." The tom spoke, his voice clear and low. "We, with the power of... StarClan, will teach you how to defend your clan like a real warrior; not the soft ones that roam ThunderClan today." The tabby tom exchanged a joyful glance with Mapleshade before turning his gaze back towards Bluepaw. "Now then, I'm going to teach you some moves that not even the strongest cat in the lake territory would know. Then, I will fight you." Bluepaw sat nervously in front of the strong warrior as she tried to remember every single piece of information that he spoke. Mapleshade calmly watched from the side of one of the towering trees, showing no expression from her cold, yellow eyes. Soon, Bluepaw grew bored hearing him drag on about the same move, and so, boldly interrupting the tom, she asked, "What about the warrior code?" Thistleclaw opened his eyes and glared at the blue apprentice. "What do you mean...?" He replied, staring down at Bluepaw with annoyance in his eyes. "Does this involve the warrior code? If I want to be a good warrior, then I have to learn about that, too... I think." "W-Well, you're interested in the warrior code?" "Yes, I want to learn everything!" Thistleclaw stared up at the dark, light-less sky, thinking to himself with no expression. Suddenly, a huge, menacing grin appeared on his face, revealing his shattered yellow teeth. "The warrior code is the key to StarClan, you know. If you ever disobey it, you will be condemned to the place of no stars..." He spoke, refusing to hide his horrifying smile. "And if you ever were to disobey the warrior code, you'd have to do something very bad that would put your clanmates in danger. So if you saw another cat breaking the warrior code and you didn't avenge it, then wouldn't you be breaking the code, as well?" Bluepaw stared up at Thistleclaw, and peered over to Mapleshade, who was silently nodding her head in agreement. "So what are you saying?" Bluepaw replied, narrowing her tiny amber eyes at the gloomy warrior. Thistleclaw grabbed a dead leaf off of the hard, dry ground and placed it in front of Bluepaw. "What I'm saying is, imagine this leaf was... Having an affair with a cat from another clan." He meowed, staring at Mapleshade. "That is against the warrior code, and thus..." He lifted up his huge paw and shot it down against the leaf, sending shards flying across the brown grass. "You must do what is right for your clan." He finished, staring eye-to-eye with Bluepaw. Bluepaw nodded her head, standing up towards the strong warrior. Do I really have to kill my own clanmates in the name of the warrior code...? She silently asked herself, daring not to speak against Thistleclaw. Almost as if the warrior could read her mind, he whispered, "In the name of the code..." Bluepaw sat emotionless for a few moments before finally opening her mouth and boldly announcing, "Then teach me what you must." Chapter 3 Bluepaw awoke from her first exhilarating training session with Thistleclaw and Mapleshade. She lifted herself up from her warm, soft moss bed, feeling as if she could fight even the mightiest fox. For the warrior code! Bluepaw cheered to herself, bouncing out of the apprentice's den. However, to her surprise, Volepaw and Berrypaw strutted out across her, fluffing their tails in her face as they passed by. Bluepaw creeped towards them, preparing to cuff one of the snobby senior apprentice's, but out of the blue, Adderpaw appeared in front of the angry blue she-cat and happily meowed, "Hiya, Bluepaw! Ready to get your hunt on?" Bluepaw nodded her head at her brother, suddenly forgetting the other apprentice's invitation to a quarrel. "Yeah, today's my first battle session and ''patrol!" Bluepaw meowed, sharing tongues with her long-known brother. "Foxshine is our aunt, so I'm sure I'll be taught well. When will you be going to the moonpool?" "Tomorrow..." Adderpaw replied, shuffling his paws nervously. "Being a medicine cat is a huge responsibility. Just imagine talking to StarClan..." Bluepaw continued licking between her brother's ears, unsure as to whether or not she would tell even her best-trusted friend that she has spoken to StarClan before. She peered over to the entrance of the camp and saw Foxshine calling her name from across the clearing, and trotted over to meet her new mentor. "We'll be doing some basic training moves, and then I'll teach you how to hunt small animals like mice." Foxshine spoke while heading out into the forest. ... Bluepaw returned back to the clearing, exhausted from her first training session. ''Thistleclaw said that it was easy... Bluepaw muttered to herself, padding over to the freshkill pile. She dropped the single tiny mouse that she could find in the harsh, ending season of leaf-fall. She glanced over to the medicine cat den, but Adderpaw was no where to be seen. To make things even worse, Volepaw was sneering at her near the corner of the apprentice's den, taunting, "You wouldn't even be able to defeat a squirrel!" Bluepaw sat alone eating her prey on the side of the clearing, with not even her own mother to talk to. Her feelings of confidence and perseverance turned into nothing but unwanted loneliness and distress without her beloved brother. The clan saw her as nothing more than the leader's daughter, and Bluepaw had finally realized it. There's nothing special about me... She silently muttered before falling into a deep sleep. "Bluepaw, you mousebrain!" A voice roared, shooting Bluepaw's eyes wide open. Mapleshade sat above her with claws unsheathed, preparing to swipe at the poor blue apprentice. "It's not my fault that I'm useless. ''I'm just going to turn into another mouth to feed!" Bluepaw wailed, refusing to stand up. "Relax. It was your first training session... There's still time during the patrol." Bluepaw stared up at the tortoiseshell queen in doubt. "It's a ''patrol, not a battle." "It's what you make of it." Thistleclaw interrupted, appearing from the wide thicket. "When you pass by ShadowClan, look for every detail. Those rotten pieces of crowfood are always up to something." Bluepaw stared up at the mighty warrior with curiousity, preparing to speak. "Silence, young one. Do not be late!" Bluepaw woke up in a flash, finding herself in the clearing where she had dozed off. To her relief, nobody had noticed her clearly sleeping in the hard dirt. She glanced at Foxshine, who was preparing the night patrol with Hollyleap and Dogscar. Now is the time I show what I'm worth... Bluepaw cheerfully thought while bouncing over to her mentor. Foxshine nodded her head at the young apprentice as they dashed out of the clearing and into the huge oak forest. By the time that the patrol hit the border of ThunderClan, touching the end of ShadowClan, they began splitting up as they marked the territory. Instead of following the mark, however, Bluepaw saw the shadow of a cat, staring right at her. "Under the bush..." It seemed to whisper, pointing its dark, transparent ears at a small thicket. Bluepaw obeyed and trotted towards the thicket, searching every paw-length. Bluepaw nearly dropped her jaw to the forest floor when she found something that no other patrol member had noticed... A dead rabbit wreaking of ShadowClan! The blue apprentice yowled, signalling the rest of the patrol to follow her. "I knew those flea-bitten pieces of foxdung were hunting in our territory!" Dogscar hissed, flexing his massive, scratched claws into the soft earth. His anger made his deep wounds light up with blood, making Bluepaw nearly gag. Nobody dared to mention the story of how the brave warrior fought off a pack of dogs, leaving him permanently scarred with unsightly wounds. "I'm going to go look for a patrol and . You guys may return." He roared, as if he was giving leader orders. Hollyleap dared not to argue with the aggravated warrior and flicked her tail towards the path back to camp. Bluepaw stared at the warrior, intrigued to see what he would do. Stay... Bluepaw trailed off from the rest of the returning patrol and jumped into a berry bush as they trotted off. She quickly turned her back and raced back to the border where Dogscar sat with all of his mangled fur on end. Soon enough, a ShadowClan patrol approached the warrior with angry expressions. "What are you doing here all alone, mousebrain?" A ShadowClan she-cat hissed, circling the warrior from the boundary. "I'm on my territory," Dogscar replied while standing up, revealing his muscles and true height. "Something that you mange-ridden thieves don't know how to do!" Bluepaw stared on, slowly creeping closer. A much larger ShadowClan tom with thick black fur stepped forward. "We never did such a thing, you snake-tongue!" "Then explain this!" Dogscar retorted, throwing the ShadowClan-scented rabbit across the border. The black tom opened his mouth to protest, but the she-cat closed his mouth with her tail while putting a paw-step over the sacred border. "So what if we hunt prey on your territory? You're nothing but a group of kittypets, anyway." She sneered, jumping a tail-length into ThunderClan territory. The warrior code... ''An oddly familiar voice whispered once again. The black tom stood back, afraid of what the she-cat would do next. "Take one more step and I'll bite your neck in half!" Dogscar hissed, jumping into battle position. The she-cat laughed, spitting in his face. "Even if we did kill your prey, it's not like we would eat it, anyway. It's all filled with maggots!" She then jumped onto the scarred warrior's chest, spitting and clawing. ''WASTER! KILL HER! The voice roared, right against Bluepaw's ear. The blue apprentice stepped back, overwhelmed by the sudden attack. KILL! KILL! KILL! THE WARRIOR CODE IS AT STAKE! The she-cat managed to pin the massive warrior down, preparing to take a bite at his neck. Bluepaw leaped up and ran straight towards the she-cat, knocking her off of Dogscar. Before Bluepaw could take a moment to breath, she was overcome with a wave of energy and heated anger, violently bit the she-cats neck. Bluepaw jumped back, staring at the ShadowClan queen. To her surprise, the cat went limp with blood trickling down her chest. DOGSCAR SAW YOU! Bluepaw, without thinking, turned towards the horrific warrior. His single eye was opened wide with disbelief, unable to speak. KILL! Bluepaw leaped onto the warrior, sending him down. In the same moment, the possessed apprentice raked her claws down his neck, sending him into shock. She quickly snapped down at his neck, sending him limp and dead. "In the name of the warrior code..." She whispered, before coming back to reality. She took three steps back, unable to believe that she had just killed two massive warriors. She peered over at the black ShadowClan tom, who was running back into the dark pine forest. A strange feeling rose inside of Bluepaw, a feeling that she had never experienced in the same way. Satisfaction. Chapter 4 Bluepaw rushed back to the ThunderClan camp, unable to drag Dogscar's heavy, breathless body across the forest. She quickly wiped off her paws in a small, damp puddle before crashing into the clearing. "Dogscar... Is dead!" She yowled, faking remorse in her voice as she halted in the middle of the camp, sending dirt flying everywhere. Warriors, queen, apprentices, and elders stared at her with wide eyes. Murmurs of disbelief and gloom rose around the entirety of ThunderClan like greencough. Foxshine let out a loud cry for the entire clan to hear, grieving for her pitiful brother. "WHO DID THIS?!" Foxshine screeched, staring at the young apprentice. "I-It was... A ShadowClan patrol! He met up with them, and they attacked..." Bluepaw stuttered, struggling to make up a convincing story. "And I was too late. But his death did not go un-avenged! I managed to kill the ShadowClan warrior before she was able to escape." Adderpaw walked out of the medicine cat den, staring in Bluepaw's soft amber eyes with unreadable expressions. He knows I'm lying, doesn't he... Crowstar stood silent for a few moments, taking in the sudden news, before jumping onto the highledge and announcing a clan meeting. Most of the cats, whom were already outside of their dens, sat down where they were standing. Every cat wreaked of despair, sending a strange aroma around the meeting. Even Crowstar had clouded tears in his eyes. "As we just recently found out, Dogscar, a strong and loyal warrior, was killed by ShadowClan. It was also brought to my attention that ShadowClan has been hunting on our ''side of the border and leaving the poor animals to rot where they were killed..." He spoke, flexing his claws on the hard rock. "And because of this, we will be going to battle with ShadowClan. Bluepaw, is Dogscar's body still near the border?" Bluepaw stood speechless, unsure of what to say. Clearly it was her fault that Dogscar was dead; was it worth getting into a battle with innocent cats? However, the brave blue apprentice wiped off the thought, quickly remembering that ''they ''were the ones who killed the rabbit! Bluepaw nodded her head to her grieving father, signalling the clan to find Dogscar. Crowstar's quick-felt sadness was replaced with pure burning anger directed to the heart of ShadowClan. "Well, you heard her. Hollyleap, Foxshine, Oakfoot, and Rabbitwhisker, go to the border!" Crowstar ordered with his raven-black fur bristling on end. The mighty leader jumped down towards Bluepaw, comforting his only daughter even in the worst situation. "You will follow me." He whispered, padding out of the clearing. Bluepaw quickly ran after her fast-paced father, struggling to keep up. Finally, after what felt like moons, Crowstar halted at a small patch of rocks, sitting down at the foot of a moss-covered slate. "What happened was a tragedy..." He spoke with a bold, loud voice. "But the fact that you were able to avenge Dogscar's death was incredible. StarClan must have been by your side!" He complimented, sitting back up. Bluepaw smiled, blindly encouraged by her father's kind words. "Now then, let's catch up with the others!" Bluepaw and Crowstar ran after the rest of the warriors, whom were busy burying Dogscar. The black she-cat ShadowClan warrior was no where to be seen, as if she had disappeared into thin air. ''ShadowClan must have found her... ''Bluepaw spoke to herself, huddling together with the mini-clan. While Foxshine and Crowstar were occupied with disposing of Dogscar, Bluepaw found herself dozing off, as if she had no choice. The blue apprentice, without surprise, woke up to find herself in the dark StarClan territory, where Mapleshade and Thistleclaw sat. Bluepaw greeted them with pride, waiting for the two to compliment her great battle. But instead, Mapleshade hissed at the apprentice, batting at her ears. "What was that horrible, messy kill?" She hissed, jumping up to her feet. "A kit could do better than that! If you want to be a strong warrior, you'll have to do better than that during the battle." Bluepaw stared back, suddenly regretting that she had not impressed her strong StarClan mentors. However, to Bluepaw's surprise, Thistleclaw lunged forward, clawing at the small blue apprentice's snout. She fell back, blood trickling into her mouth. Bluepaw watched in horror as the two cats burst out with laughter, their heavy breath scaring away distant crows. "I can do much worse, don't forget. Now go!" Thistleclaw hissed, fading away into the dark, musty air. Bluepaw woke up once again, still feeling the sting from her deep wound on her snout. Rabbitwhisker stared down at the apprentice with shock in her emerald green eyes. "What happened to your snout...?" She asked, wiping off blood with her paw. Bluepaw quickly looked at her reflection through a small puddle, and stepped back in surprise. ''It's the same wound... Oddly enough, Bluepaw felt enlightened by the sight of the wound. I'm going to do much worse to ShadowClan... ''She thought, letting the blood trickle down from her snout. ''Let them see that I can take a hit! After a few more moments of waiting, Crowstar finally commanded the group of cats to head forward into ShadowClan territory. Finally! Bluepaw stepped forward, feeling encouragement in each step. The thick pine needles felt smooth and prickly under her soft pads, sending a strange chill through her feet. The patrol quickly spotted ShadowClan, hidden deep within the thick evergreen trees. Just seeing the strong, clueless ShadowClan warriors made Bluepaw feel sick to her small stomach. They're never going to know what's coming... Crowstar stopped and whispered orders to the band of ThunderClan warriors, but Bluepaw tuned out her own father. All the brave apprentice wanted to do was rip her claws through a ShadowClan cat. Nobody would dare harm the warrior code under Bluepaw's watch! After a few minutes, the ThunderClan warriors marched into the camp, howling like rabid dogs. The group split up into two, but Bluepaw ran in alone. She quickly targeted a young tabby apprentice, most likely only 6 moons old. She raked her claws down the apprentice's spine, sending him shrieking into the bushes. The blood felt warm under her claws, but unlike the last short-term battle, Bluepaw did not feel the same wave of strength that she once did. Before the apprentice could even tell what was happening, a strong, muscled ShadowClan warrior leaped onto her back. He clawed at her neck, sending her onto the ground. He's trying to kill me! Bluepaw waved her limbs around trying to regain balance, but she knew that she was pinned down like a dead squirrel. The rest of the ThunderClan cats were busy in their own battles on the opposite side of ShadowClan. Bluepaw was alone, awaiting her sudden death. Finally, at the last second, Bluepaw felt the rush of vengeance and strength that she was desperately awaiting. A voice seemed to whisper in her ear, speaking, "Don't waste this like you did last time..." Bluepaw kicked the ShadowClan warrior off of her stomach and leaped on him like a graceful rabbit. Before the tom could stand, she raked her sharp claws down his stomach, leaving him limp in the ground. Bluepaw felt no remorse for the cat, and kicked him into the needle-filled dirt. Another she-cat raced up to her with claws unsheathed, but Bluepaw leaped back just in time, sending her flying into brambles. She leaped onto the ShadowClan warrior and bit hard into her neck, watching as she struggled for a breath. TO BE CONTINUED